Ceres Youth Baseball & Softball Organization completed its 46th season of recreational play with an All-Star Showcase last month.
“Our season went really well,” Vice President of Baseball Ismael Ontiveros Jr. said. “We did a lot of improvements. We extended the season. We got a lot of good feedback from parents and coaches.”
About 580 boys and girls, aged 4-15, signed up for CYBS this year.
“We wanted to make recreational ball relevant again,” Ontiveros said. “We did that. In the past, travel ball got most of the attention. Rec ball was ignored.”
CYBS offered player registration solely online this year.
“Everything was done through computers,” Ontiveros said. “It was a success.”
“If we kept registration open, we would have had over 700 kids,” he added. “We had to turn down a lot of kids because we had to have six weeks of leeway for uniforms.”
The league was comprised of 51 teams, including 33 baseball and 18 softball.
There were six divisions for baseball players: 5 & under, 7 & under, 8 & under, 10 & under, 12 & under and 15 & under.
There were four divisions for softball players: 6 & under, 8 & under, 11 & under and 13 & under.
The 2024 regular season was expanded from nine to 12 weeks.
Each team played a total of 12 games.
Games were played Monday through Saturday on five different fields at the George Costa Ball Field Complex.
All five fields were renovated.
“We brought back Saturday games."
The regular season concluded on May 18.
In the 15-and-under division for baseball, the Yankees and Dodgers took first and second, respectively.
The White Sox and Nationals took first and second in the 12-and-under division.
The Blue Jays and Nationals took first and second in the 10-and-under division.
The Angels and Dodgers took first and second in the 8-and-under division.
The Dodgers and Giants took first and second in the 7-and-under division.
In the 13-and-under division for softball, San Diego State and Inferno were co-champions.
Cal Berkeley and Stanford placed first and second, respectively, in the 10-and-under division.
Chaos and Washington placed first and second in the 8-and-under division.
CYBS’s first-ever All-Star Showcase was held on May 19.
Most Valuable Player rings were given to top players for each team, including Isaac Mora (Dodgers Blue), Cristiano Cabadas (White Sox), Andrew Yorba (Giants), Domingo Mendoza (Blue Jays), Sebastian Espindola (Dodgers), Max Ortega (Angels), Andrew Santillan (Diamondbacks), Preston Stewart (Giants) and Isaiah Magana (Yankees).
No All-Star games were held for softball due to conflicting schedules.
“We want to continue to showcase our kids,” Ontiveros said. “Moving forward, we’ll do softball.”
Playoffs were staged May 20-24 for all age groups excluding tee-ball.
More than 700 people attended the Ceres Youth Baseball & Softball Organization Opening Day Ceremony on March 22.
Javier Lopez, Bret Silveira and Daniel Martinez represented the Ceres City Council.
Vice Mayor Silveira threw out the first pitch for baseball to Councilmember Martinez.
Player Alexia Lopez threw out the first softball pitch to former player/CYBS parent Omaira Valencia.
Lopez filled in for past President/Vice President of Softball/board member/coach Dima Ferrel, who was unable to attend the 30-minute event.
“We wanted Dima to throw out the first pitch. Due to health issues, she wasn’t able to make it.”
Picture day was held on March 20.
CYBS also changed the way it operated its snack bar during the 2024 season by utilizing an online ordering platform.
“It did create a boost in sales. We’re looking to get better.”
CYBS’s board consisted of nine people: Ontiveros, Jorge Guerrero (President), Jessica Lopez (Vice President-Softball), Melissa Baldwin (Treasurer), Shauna Weeks (Director), Randy Wheeler (Umpire Commissioner-Baseball), Audel Valencia (Umpire Commissioner-Softball), Nikole Ferrel (Sizzle Commissioner) and Marty Sanchez (Blaze Commissioner).
“I love the direction of the executive board. We’re on the same page. We’re here for the people-our parents and players.”
